Following the attacks of Sep 11,
democratization in the Middle East became a demand of national security.
Attempts have been made in Western academia to reconcile Islam and
Muslim societies with political liberalism and democracy,
while foreign policy makers supported regime changes led by “moderate
Islamists” to replace authoritarian regimes with democracy. Such
attempts don’t seem to succeed. In this lecture, I will explain what I
think to be the crucial factors that hinder democratization
in the Middle East, and will shed light on the problematic assumptions
that arguments for “Islamic Liberalism” or “non-secular democracy” rest
upon.